BLAR12052 - Geotechnical Studies

General Information

Unit Synopsis

In this unit, you will learn the role of geotechnical investigations in the design process, and soil mechanics including description of physical properties, soil classification, bearing capacity, permeability, compressibility, shear strength, slope stability, flow of water, and foundations and footings including investigations into basic principles of subsurface rock and soil materials and their ability to support structures.

Details

Level Undergraduate
Unit Level 2
Credit Points 6
Student Contribution Band SCA Band 2
Fraction of Full-Time Student Load 0.125
Pre-requisites or Co-requisites

BLAR11049 Built Environment Communication and Skills Or COMM11003 Professional and Technical Communication (before 2012 term 1)

Important note: Students enrolled in a subsequent unit who failed their pre-requisite unit, should drop the subsequent unit before the census date or within 10 working days of Fail grade notification. Students who do not drop the unit in this timeframe cannot later drop the unit without academic and financial liability. See details in the Assessment Policy and Procedure (Higher Education Coursework).

Class Timetable View Unit Timetable
Residential School No Residential School

Unit Availabilities from Term 3 - 2018

Term 2 - 2019 Profile
Online
Term 2 - 2020 Profile
Online
Term 2 - 2021 Profile
Online
Term 2 - 2022 Profile
Online
Term 2 - 2023 Profile
Online
Term 2 - 2024 Profile
Online

Attendance Requirements

All on-campus students are expected to attend scheduled classes – in some units, these classes are identified as a mandatory (pass/fail) component and attendance is compulsory. International students, on a student visa, must maintain a full time study load and meet both attendance and academic progress requirements in each study period (satisfactory attendance for International students is defined as maintaining at least an 80% attendance record).

Assessment Overview

Recommended Student Time Commitment

Each 6-credit Undergraduate unit at CQUniversity requires an overall time commitment of an average of 12.5 hours of study per week, making a total of 150 hours for the unit.

Assessment Tasks

Assessment Task Weighting
1. Written Assessment 30%
2. Written Assessment 25%
3. Online Quiz(zes) 10%
4. Written Assessment 35%

This is a graded unit: your overall grade will be calculated from the marks or grades for each assessment task, based on the relative weightings shown in the table above. You must obtain an overall mark for the unit of at least 50%, or an overall grade of ‘pass’ in order to pass the unit. If any ‘pass/fail’ tasks are shown in the table above they must also be completed successfully (‘pass’ grade). You must also meet any minimum mark requirements specified for a particular assessment task, as detailed in the ‘assessment task’ section (note that in some instances, the minimum mark for a task may be greater than 50%).

Consult the University’s Grades and Results Policy for more details of interim results and final grades

Past Exams

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Previous Feedback

Term 2 - 2023 : The overall satisfaction for students in the last offering of this course was 73.33% (`Agree` and `Strongly Agree` responses), based on a 36.59% response rate.

Feedback, Recommendations and Responses

Every unit is reviewed for enhancement each year. At the most recent review, the following staff and student feedback items were identified and recommendations were made.

Source: Student Unit Teaching Evaluation
Feedback
Clear, informative and well-delivered unit. Assessment questions are relevant to actual building and construction industry practice.
Recommendation
It is recommended to continue with the same teaching practice.
Action Taken
Similar teaching practice was adopted for the current delivery.
Source: Student Unit Teaching Evaluation
Feedback
Assessment tips were extremely helpful in this unit.
Recommendation
It is recommended to continue with the same teaching strategy in which the lecturer regularly provides 'Tips for Assessment Questions' in News Forum/ Quickmail upon covering the required knowledge in lectures and tutorials to answer those questions.
Action Taken
Similar teaching strategy will be applied to provide the guidance on assessment questions.
Source: Student Unit Teaching Evaluation and student email
Feedback
The unit covers a long list of materials related to every day practice. The lecturer made sure they were covered giving better understanding of the knowledge referring to practical examples. Students are now using this knowledge in their actual practice e.g. reading soil test reports, retaining wall design and construction.
Recommendation
It is recommended to continue with the same teaching practice.
Action Taken
The current delivery focused on giving many practical examples and referring to applications of actual industry practice.
Source: The Student Unit Teaching Evaluation T2- 2023
Feedback
The lecturer is extremely knowledgeable with an extensive understanding of the subject matter. Assignment feedback is thorough and helpful. Overall, a well constructed unit.
Recommendation
Similar teaching method will be adopted for future deliveries.
Action Taken
Nil.
Source: The Student Unit Teaching Evaluation T2- 2023
Feedback
Students find that the Introduction of MS Team, email, Moodle for same communication is somewhat confusing.
Recommendation
Future deliveries will focus on using Moodle mainly for Learning Management System purpose while MS Teams and emails as a general communication channel.
Action Taken
Nil.
Unit learning Outcomes

On successful completion of this unit, you will be able to:

  1. Apply soil and rock mechanics principles in building design and construction.
  2. Interpret the influences of geological processes and natural environments on geotechnical design.
  3. Explain the use and limitations of geotechnical design in built environment projects.
  4. Perform basic geotechnical calculations including soil phase relationships, strength, stability, stress, compressibility, permeability and bearing capacity.

Alignment of Assessment Tasks to Learning Outcomes
Assessment Tasks Learning Outcomes
1 2 3 4
1 - Written Assessment • • • •
2 - Written Assessment • • • •
3 - Online Quiz(zes) • • •
4 - Written Assessment • • • •
Alignment of Graduate Attributes to Learning Outcomes
• Introductory Level
• Intermediate Level
• Graduate Level
Graduate Attributes Learning Outcomes
1 2 3 4
1 - Communication • • • •
2 - Problem Solving • • • •
4 - Information Literacy • • • •
6 - Information Technology Competence • • • •
Alignment of Assessment Tasks to Graduate Attributes
• Introductory Level
• Intermediate Level
• Graduate Level
Assessment Tasks Graduate Attributes
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
1 - Written Assessment • • • •
2 - Written Assessment • • • •
3 - Online Quiz(zes) • • • •
4 - Written Assessment • • • •